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Review: Carl Donnelly and Tiffany Stevenson - Blake’s Coffee House, Newcastle. |
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Written by Andrew Dipper
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23 07 2010 |
 With the Edinburgh Fringe Festival just three weeks away, the clock is ticking for acts to perfect their routines in time for the largest arts festival in the world. In the final show of the Hilarity Bites comedy season in Newcastle, Tiffany Stevenson and multi-award winning comic Carl Donnelly performed at Blake's Coffee House to a small audience in preparation for their upcoming shows, Dictators and How Do You Solve A Problem Like Carl Donnelly?
First up was Tiffany Stevenson, who arrived on to the make-shift stage
and chatted to the audience about the premise of her Edinburgh show,
Dictators. Centred on her personal rebellion against her mother and told alongside a
series of photos pinned to the Blake's wall, Stevenson spent an hour
raising some valid points about totalitarianism and well worked
witticisms; however her material seemed to be lacking in any kind of punch line.
Her routines were poignant and well presented, but, whilst I agree with
her wholeheartedly on the role of the national media and her
condemnation of China, I just didn't find her funny. Her material would
perhaps work better in a lecture theatre than a comedy venue, and the
Blake's crowd appeared to recognise that by maintaining silence
throughout.
However, following the half hour break, the night picked up as 2009
Edinburgh Comedy Award Nominee Carl Donnelly previewed his new show,
entitled How Do You Solve A Problem Like Carl Donnelly? Similar to
Chris Ramsey's show Aggro-phobic in tone, How Do You Solve A Problem
Like Carl Donnelly? centres on the silly and stupid antics of the
comedian, as he effortlessly worked his way through anecdotes about his
social faux pas and his journey to maturity and marriage.
Throughout the hour-long set, the Donnelly managed to make fun out of the
mundane and his energetic and interactive style lifted the atmosphere
in Blake's. He was worth the £8 entry fee alone, and it was an absolute
pleasure to watch Donnelly on stage; he is a natural entertainer and great fun. And, despite The Fringe being a few weeks away, Donnelly's show is one of
the best I've seen so far from the preview season. Without doubt it'll be a hit in
Edinburgh, so if you're heading to The Fringe in August be sure to
catch him. You won't regret it.
Comedy at Blake's Coffee House returns in September. For more information on future dates you can either visit the Hilarity Bites website, or keep checking here.
http://www.hilaritybites.co.uk/
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